March 28, 2008
Official Press Release
Return To Roots welcomes partner who finds meaning in coming home

RADFORD, Va., March 28, 2008- It might have been the long way home, but Robert Weeks’ journey brought him back to Floyd, and he’s forever grateful. After attending Bridgewater College he left the region to find a job in his field of graphic design. After twelve years of living in Northern Virginia, upstate New York and elsewhere, the Floyd native returned to his roots. Why?

“I made a conscious decision to be a part of my community.”

Continued ...

Return to Roots is conducting Focus Groups at Radford University and Virginia Tech!

In February and March, Return to Roots is asking Juniors, Seniors, and Grad students at Radford University and Virginia Tech what they are seeking in jobs and life style beyond college.

Special Thanks to the following businesses for their contributions and donations of prizes and in-kind contributions:
Career Services at Radford University
Career Services at Virginia Tech
El Charro Mexican Restaurant, Radford
Radford University Athletic Department
Vintage Cellar, Radford
Encore! Artful Gifts and Home Décor, Radford
Annie Kay’s & Imaginations, Radford
Back Porch Sundries, Radford
Christian Travel Agency, Radford
Fazolis, Christiansburg
Coldstone, Christiansburg
Bristol Rhythm & Roots
Uptown Nails, Radford
Bohemian Trading Company, Radford
Radford Florist, Radford
Gillie's Restaurant, Blacksburg
Bollo's Coffee Cafe ,Blacksburg
Souvlaki's Subs and More, Blacksburg
Mish Mish Art Supplies, Blacksburg
Xanadu Home Decor, Blacksburg
Vintage Cellar, Blacksburg
Cinco de Mayo Mexican Restaurant, Christiansburg
Capone’s Fine Jewelry, Blacksburg
Hooptie Ride, Blacksburg
The Chocolate Spike, Christiansburg and Blacksburg
Kroger, Radford

If you’re a business that would like to make a donation or contribution, please contact Return to Roots at ReturnToRoots@vebinc.org

December 11, 2007
Official Press Release
Return to Roots Brings Another Native Home

RADFORD, Va., December 11, 2007- Return to Roots (www.ReturnToRoots.org) has helped another Southwest Virginia native to come home.

Amy Vencill grew up in Belfast, Virginia and graduated in 2002 from high school in Lebanon, the County seat of Russell County, an area rich in natural and historical significance (www.swvaonline.org/pdf/Russell.pdf.). She attended Southwest Virginia Community College for two years, and went to Radford University where she graduated in December, 2006 with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, and a minor in Marketing. Continued ...

September 13, 2007
News from Congressman Rick Boucher
BOUCHER ANNOUNCES FEDERAL GRANT FOR RETURN TO ROOTS

$50,000 Grant Will Enhance Outreach Effort to Individuals and Families with Southwest Virginia Ties

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Representative Rick Boucher announced today that, at his urging, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, through its Rural Development Agency, is awarding a federal grant in the amount of $50,000 to increase the reach and resources offered by Return to Roots.  Return to Roots is an innovative program managed by the Virginia Economic Bridge, which provides individuals who have Southwest Virginia ties and an interest in returning to the region, with information regarding career opportunities in the region, as well as other resources they might require when relocating. Continued ...

September 12, 2007
Official Press Release
MEDIA ADVISORY: Governor Timothy M. Kaine available for media interviews Friday

RADFORD, Va., Sept. 12, 2007 – Governor Timothy M. Kaine will be available for media interviews at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 14 during the Return to Roots Gala.

Kaine will be available for media interviews from 6:30 to 6:45 at the Birthplace of Country Music Alliance offices, 510 Cumberland St, Bristol, Va.
Also that night, Kaine will take an 8:30 stage with the Biscuit Burners to play his harmonica during the Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion.

Kaine originally launched the Return to Roots Web site, www.ReturnToRoots.org, one year ago on Sept. 18, 2006, in Lebanon, Va. He will be at the Gala to celebrate the first birthday of Return to Roots and its Web site. Continued ...

August 30, 2007
Official Press Release
Governor Timothy M. Kaine to attend Return to Roots Fund-raising Gala and Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion

RADFORD, Va., AUG. 30, 2007 – Governor Timothy M. Kaine will attend the Return to Roots Fund-raising Gala on Friday, Sept. 14, and will play the harmonica on one of the Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion stages that same night.

August 24, 2007
Official Press Release
Return to Roots and Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion partner for fund-raising Gala Event

To celebrate the launch of www.ReturnToRoots.org and to unite two great organizations, a fund-raising Gala event will be held the same weekend as the Bristol Rhythm & Roots Reunion. Continued ...

July 17, 2007
Official Press Release
Return to Roots and Northrop Grumman Team for Company Recruitment

LEBANON, Va., July 17, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) – Return to Roots and Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) have announced a cooperative partnership to enhance Northrop Grumman's recruitment efforts for its Lebanon, Va., facility. Continued ...

January 15, 2007
THE ROANOKE TIMES
Southwest Virginia says it's time to come home:
The region has a new problem: There are more skilled jobs than workers to fill them.

by Paul Dellinger

Southwest Virginians have spent decades wanting more skilled and technical jobs that could help keep young people from leaving the region.

Be careful what you wish for.

"For the first time in my history, we've got more skilled jobs than we can fill," said Ed Whitmore, Smyth County administrator and a longtime player in the region's economic development.

"We've been screaming for high-tech jobs out here for years. Now we've got them. We feel like the dog who's caught the car," he said.
http://www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/wb/100162

December 03, 2006
BLUEFIELD DAILY TELEGRAPH
Campaign taking root in Virginia:

By CHARLES OWENS

TAZEWELL, Va. — A campaign aimed at luring 15,000 alumni back home to Southwest Virginia is slowly beginning to take root.

From Charlotte, N.C., to Cincinnati, Ohio, success stories are already being told of former alumni who are returning home to Southwest Virginia as part of Gov. Timothy M. Kaine’s “Return to Roots” campaign. The effort to lure highly skilled alumni back is deemed vital to such projects as the proposed 680-acre Bluestone Business and Technology Center in Bluefield, Va., as well as current employers such as CGI-AMS and Northrop Grumman in Lebanon. The two Russell County-based companies alone are expected to create more than 700 highly-skilled technology jobs for Southwest Virginia.

http://www.bdtonline.com/local/local_story_337214045.html

November 29, 2006
BRISTOL HERALD- COURIER

Region hopes to end 'brain drain': (EDITORIAL)
This is the simple message of Southwest Virginia's Return to Roots campaign, which targets 20-somethings and 30-somethings who left the region to go to college and never returned. Campaign boosters hope that new employment opportunities coupled with a lodging for home will lure them back.

The campaign is in its infancy - far too early to judge its success. Still anecdotal evidence suggests it is working. Continued ...

November 26, 2006
BLUEFIELD DAILY TELEGRAPH
Inspired homecoming:
Governor Kaine’s ‘Return to Roots’ campaign renews optimism in region for family with deep local ties

BLUEFIELD, Va. — A casual conversation over a campfire in North Carolina has led to a long-awaited homecoming for a Ohio family with deep roots in Southwest Virginia.
http://www.bdtonline.com/cnhi/bdtonline/homepage/
local_story_330195811.html?keyword=leadpicturestory

November 16, 2006
THE COALFIELD PROGRESS
Wanted: Former residents to fill jobs
For 30 years or more, economic development in far Southwest Virginia has focused on finding jobs for local residents whose industries had shrunk or disappeared, according to Lenowisco Planning District Executive Director Ron Flanary.
The goal was to recruit light- and medium-skill manufacturing plants to hire laid-off miners and folks whose sewing or furniture factory shut down.
But the coalfield region is in an economic and cultural transformation, Flanary says. Continued ...

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